On-line activism such as petitioning using Avaaz, or creating an on-line digest like Burma Digest, and posting videos to You Tube or this one from Google ...

feel like an established practice to help the World become aware and witness - even more so in my world after O.net.

Twitter could be a much more powerful tool in the hands of activists who don't have the benefit of an existing broad public profile.

Imagine, now I have a reason to recommend using Twitter.

okay. I have heard this term one more time and I really hate to show my ignorance....but what the heck is a twitter?

Click on the twitter link

thanks. Guess I was showing my ignorance.

Evvy, Did the link to Twitter help you better understand the service?

Honestly Peter, I just haven't had time to really explore it. I had just thought there might be a quick explanation. I will try and make time to explore sometime in the coming week. Thanks for asking.

Here's my "for instance" ... if Christina is travelling (within Uganda or elsewhere) and has a mobile phone she can text her Twitter account to convey her progress and advise if there are delays.

As a user you can follow Christina's journey by "subscribing" to an RSS feed related to her Twitter account.

Of course - no mobile coverage, or internet connection, then Twitter is of limited use.

Wow - what an impressive idea. Peter, thanks for illuminating it! Your post provided me with an opportunity to smack my forehead - fan-TAS-tic!

In past years, I've been a point of contact in emergencies (thankfully never used) for people who were active in difficult parts of the world (e.g. Central America in the 80's) - I can see how this is an incredible tool to have.

Appreciate the comment Jon.

Jon said:

Wow - what an impressive idea. Peter, thanks for illuminating it! Your post provided me with an opportunity to smack my forehead - fan-TAS-tic!

In past years, I've been a point of contact in emergencies (thankfully never used) for people who were active in difficult parts of the world (e.g. Central America in the 80's) - I can see how this is an incredible tool to have.

Been poking around Twitter a bit more lately. Seems like the place for the super-duper uber-connected. Though the cell phone to Twitter online messages does have some interesting possibility behind it.

The function of tracking key words opens some fears and opportunities.

Hmmmmm, I've not bumped into that feature yet.

I could see tracking "darfur" and "ned.com" Can you please open up the box and share some of the possible fears and opps?

Here's a link to some Twitter tweaks.

By using a # mark attached to a keyword, everytime that word is used in a "tweet" it is fed to my e-mail account, along with the user id.

So in the case of "Darfur" I can follow whomever else is "tweeting" that word.

Now ofcourse the paranoid, some for good reason, may not appreciate the functionality.

Here are some key words:

'invite' to invite a friend.

'follow' to receive updates.

'track' to track interests.

'whois' for info.

'off' to silence.

E.g. texting "track Darfur" generates the following ...

twitter: You'll now receive updates matching 'darfur'. To stop, send 'untrack darfur'.

And so ...

twitter: (icsl): US President George W Bush defends his decision not to intervene in Darfur's "genocide"

me: whois icsl

twitter: Ivan carlos da Silva, since Feb 2008.

bio: fanfarrao - Electrical and Computer Engineer

location: Brazil, Rio de Janeiro web: http://lopesivan.blogspot.com/

Sent at 3:32 PM on Thursday

U.C. Berkeley student's Twitter messages alerted world to his arrest in Egypt

Twitter to the Rescue

Twitter-lee'dee

twitter-wee-doo

If i ever said i do, will you still believe i loved you.

The Ratzinger Effect: more money, more pilgrims – and lots more Latin

Carpe Diem

Abutebaris modo subjunctivo denuo

Ad captandum vulgus

Brevis esse latoro obscurus fio

Peter Rees wrote:

But Jon's presentation referenced a use of Twitter for social activism, namely assuring the safety of activists in dangerous places.

I think texting rocks the hoopla out of Twitter in this specific application. [Oh, hello. My name is Lars I have not Twittered in... well, ever...]

Lars Hasselblad Torres said:

Peter Rees wrote:

But Jon's presentation referenced a use of Twitter for social activism, namely assuring the safety of activists in dangerous places.

I think texting rocks the hoopla out of Twitter in this specific application. [Oh, hello. My name is Lars I have not Twittered in... well, ever...]

Lars -

Not sure I'm getting your point. It sounds like your saying, "I have a phone, who needs radio?"

The dynamic is using a one-to-many relationship, rather than a one-to-one.

And that's disregarding how Twitter may integrate with other "social media" applications.

phone today is a one-to-many: text-to-web-to-text... anyway, my real point was that, for example, during the SF anti-Olympics rally, texting was far more strategic than twitter for 'real time' social activism. twitter will clearly have its edge for online-only activists. i'd be curious to know how many people have a twitter app on the phones/pdas ie saturation in hand-held market? the edge of texting is that it doesn't need an app right?

Lars said:

phone today is a one-to-many: text-to-web-to-text... anyway, my real point was that, for example, during the SF anti-Olympics rally, texting was far more strategic than twitter for 'real time' social activism. twitter will clearly have its edge for online-only activists. i'd be curious to know how many people have a twitter app on the phones/pdas ie saturation in hand-held market? the edge of texting is that it doesn't need an app right?

Twitter Helps Student Escape from Egyptian Jail offers an example.

Your text may go to a distribution list ... however is that everyone who may be interested in your activity?